Morten Hørning Jensen, «Rural Galilee and Rapid Changes: An Investigation of the Socio-Economic Dynamics and Developments in Roman Galilee» biblica, Vol. 93 (2012) 43-67 page 51

Vol 93 (2012)

Morten Hørning Jensen, «Rural Galilee and Rapid Changes: An Investigation of the Socio-Economic Dynamics and Developments in Roman Galilee», Vol. 93 (2012) 43-67

Much research on the socio-economic conditions of Galilee in the Herodian period has argued for a rapid economic deterioration amongst the rural population. This is said to have resulted in a deadly spiral of violence prompting popular protest movements of which Jesus of Nazareth became the most renowned. Other investigations, however, paint a much more lenient picture of Galilee being under only a moderate development. This article outlines the problem at hand in the research, suggests a methodology for further development and applies this to new archaeological material emerging from excavations in Galilee and the textual material available.

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51 RURAL GALILEE AND RAPID CHANGES It should be noted immediately that there are several methodological complications connected to the use of surface surveys in establishing settlement and population density, such as rather broad periodizations (e.g. the entire Roman period), different counting strategies, problems with detecting pottery in certain periods and more, which may lead to over- or under-representation of certain periods 27. Nevertheless, surveys are valuable as a macro tool that can provide a preliminary view of a given areaâ€™s development over time; data from actual excavations can later be added to provide a more detailed knowledge of that area. In 2001 a group of Israeli archaeologists published Settlement Dynamics and Regional Diversity in Ancient Upper Galilee, which summarizes the results from a number of minor surveys in Upper Galilee and provides an overview of the number of settlements in the region throughout the ancient period; the results from the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods are listed in Chart 1. It is immediately apparent that the number of settlements increased throughout these periods, though at an uneven pace. In the Roman period, the increase was 60%, whereas the growth in the Byzantine period was only 14% 28. Hel. Rom. Byz. (332-63 BCE) (63 BCE â€• 324 CE) (324-641) Upper Galilee 106 170 194 Chart 1 A survey was published regarding the area east of Galilee, the Golan, by Dan Urman in 1985, which produced results very similar to those of Upper Galilee as can be seen in Chart 2. An increase is noticeable throughout the period with the sharpest increase in the Roman period (142%) followed by a minor increase in the Byzantine period (15%) 29. 27 For a discussion, see U. LEIBNER, Settlement and History in Hellenis- tic, Roman, and Byzantine Galilee. An Archaeological Survey of the Eastern Galilee (Studies and Texts in Antiquity and Christianity 127; TÃ¼bingen 2009) 59-86. 28 Cf. R. FRANKEL et al. (eds.), Settlement Dynamics and Regional Diver- sity in Ancient Upper Galilee (IAA Reports 14; Jerusalem 2001) 104-140, especially table 5.1 p. 126. 29 D. URMAN, The Golan. A Profile of a Region during the Roman and Byzantine Periods (BAR International Series 269; London 1985).